Damien Duff: 'Have we given the best version of ourselves, no'
Shelbourne manager Damien Duff Credit: Peter Fitzpatrick (ETPhotos)
Ronan MacNamara reports from the Aviva Stadium.
Damien Duff admitted that his Shelbourne side didn’t show the best version of themselves as they were swatted aside by Derry City in a record-breaking 4-0 defeat in the FAI Cup final at the Aviva Stadium.
Goals from Jamie McGonigle and Jordan McEneff either side of a Cameron McJannet brace saw Derry outclass their opponents in a game which encapsulated the 25-point gap between the sides in the league and Duff had no complaints about the result.
“The one regret is a few of us go home today and look ourselves in the mirror, have we given the best version of ourselves, no. We knew to win the cup we had to and I don’t think we did.
“That was always the fear, a young team with not a lot of big game experience so it’s ended up being true, you could feel a flatness maybe the emotion of the game did get to us and they capitalised on it simple as that.
“They gave their best but in terms of hunger, desire and attitude I could never fault them but have we given the perfect game like I touched on after the Bohs game, we certainly haven’t and Derry capitalised on it, deserved winners.”
It was clear to see that while Ruaidhri Higgins’ side had burst through the glass ceiling in lifting their first FAI Cup in a decade, Shelbourne had reached theirs, but Duff was filled with pride when reflecting on his side’s year.
“On paper you could say it’s a humiliating result but I walked into the stadium today immensely proud and I will leave immensely proud. The lads have been fantastic all year and at the end of the day sometimes it comes down to that bit of quality.
“We gave away poor goals, it’s a collective. The goals were all things we touched on during the week but doing it under the lights and the stadium is different. Sometimes you grow more as a person from the difficult days and in a strange way I enjoyed difficult days as a player because I knew I would come back stronger and that’s what we have to take out of it.
“It’s a showpiece of Irish football, the eyes of, Europe and scouts from all over the world come in for this game today, and Shelbourne were part of it, we have been dormant for many years but we were in a cup final, we lost, ok no problem. Absolutely amazing year for the club.
“I said to the guys pre-match it’s the proudest day of my life but it’s not the hardest day, four nil on paper, horrendous result, I've had a lot more difficult days. I walked in ten foot tall into Landsdowne today and I will walk out ten foot tall,” he said defiantly.
